For Immediate Release Common Cause Applauds New Reform Bills To Amplify Voices Of Americans

Common Cause applauds Reps. John Yarmuth (D-KY), David Price (D-NC), and John Sarbanes (D-MD) for introducing three strong reform bills Tuesday that would create incentives to enhance the voices of regular Americans in elections by creating small-donor matching programs for federal elections.

"Americans are fed up with the unprecedented outside spending we have seen by special interests in our federal elections," said Karen Hobert Flynn, senior vice president for programs of Common Cause. "We are pleased to see the House Democratic Caucus Task Force on Fair Governance, led by Rep. John Larson (D-CT), prioritizing policies that address some of the most dangerous threats to our democracy."

The Fair Elections Now Act (HR 269), the Empowering Citizens Act (HR 270), introduced by Reps. Price and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Rep. Sarbanes' Grassroots Democracy Act (HR 268) would replace our badly broken campaign finance system with a small-donor driven system that would free Members of Congress and presidential candidates from dependence on super PACs, corporate interests, and ultra-wealthy individuals.

In a July 2012 USA Today/Gallup poll, 87 percent of voters said that reducing corruption was an extremely or very important issue for the next president, placing it second only to job creation. Other polls show similar large majorities of people in support of fighting the growing influence of special-interest money through campaign reforms and amending the constitution to overturn Citizens United. And in places ranging from Montana, Colorado, Massachusetts, Chicago and San Francisco, three of four voters supported ballot measures instructing Congress to do just that.

Common Cause is a nonpartisan, grassroots organization dedicated to restoring the core values of American democracy, reinventing an open, honest, and accountable government that works for the public interest, and empowering ordinary people to make their voices heard.